28 January 2026 – US car dealers are exposing themselves to growing legal and commercial risk if they turn to AI and online sources to fill gaps in vehicle imagery.
A survey of more than 500 US car dealers reveals that only one in ten say they always list vehicles with a relevant image from the outset. With high-quality visuals now central to online car buying, the findings suggest many dealers face mounting pressure to source imagery quickly, increasing the temptation to take shortcuts using AI-generated or scraped content.
That temptation comes with consequences. While imagery is essential to conversion, the research shows that dealers say they do not know, or are unsure, whether the images they use are fully covered by copyright, leaving businesses potentially exposed to costly infringement claims.
Key findings
The survey points to three connected risks facing US auto retailers:
- Persistent image gaps
Only around 10% of dealers say they always list vehicles with a relevant image. Nearly half admit they regularly advertise cars using “image coming soon” placeholders, particularly among medium- and high-volume dealer groups managing large inventories. - Copyright blind spots
Around one in ten dealers also say they are unsure whether the images they use are copyright-safe. That risk more than doubles at the extremes of the market, with uncertainty rising among both small independent dealers and the very largest groups managing the highest listing volumes.
- Exposure to litigation
As dealers turn to AI tools or online image sources to plug visual gaps, they risk using content they do not own and cannot legally protect, opening the door to takedowns, disputes, and potential copyright litigation.
AI raises the stakes
The findings from the survey, commissioned by visualization experts IMAGIN.studio, come as copyright disputes around generative AI intensify. High-profile controversy surrounding content generation tools, like Sora and Nano Banana, has renewed scrutiny of how AI systems are trained and whether their outputs infringe on copyrighted works. Courts in the US are already weighing cases that challenge the legality of using copyrighted material in AI training datasets, while also reaffirming that content created without human authorship may not be protected by copyright at all.
For dealers, that legal uncertainty creates a clear risk. Images generated or modified using generic AI tools may carry no ownership, no provenance, and no legal protection, leaving businesses exposed if rights holders challenge their use.
Martijn Versteegen, CEO and Co-Founder at IMAGIN.studio commented: “Dealers know that images sell cars, but this research shows how many are still forced to operate without the visuals they need. In that situation, the temptation to grab an image online or use AI is understandable, but it’s also dangerous.
“If you don’t own the image, you don’t control the risk. Dealers using unlicensed or AI-generated visuals could be opening themselves up to serious legal and financial consequences.”
